Lawsuits brought by the Authors Guild on a class-action basis and five large publishers as representatives of Association of American Publishers against Google have been settled, pending approval by the US District Court. The release notes that “the agreement acknowledges the rights and interests of copyright owners, provides an efficient means for them to control how their intellectual property is accessed online and enables them to receive compensation for online access to their works.” Yes, compensation. Google will pay a total of $125 million, “to establish the Book Rights Registry, to resolve existing claims by authors and publishers and to […]
Cutbacks at Doubleday
The Doubleday Publishing Group has eliminated a total of 16 positions spread across all of the group’s lines, including Doubleday, Broadway, Nan A. Talese, Speigel and Grau, and Waterbrook Multnomah. Spokesman David Drake confirms that the “jobs were cut in our editorial, marketing, publicity, art and ad promo departments.” Drake says, “These job cuts followed a close review of all aspects of our publishing operations by the management of our publishing group, and, as painful as it is for everyone here to lose a number of well-respected colleagues, we believe the decision was necessary and in the interest of our […]
Bin Laden Has a Book?
If he’s still alive, Osama Bin Laden may be working on a book called Nidal (or Struggle), according to news services in India and Pakistan. One Arab daily is quoted as saying the book “looks at the atrocities committed against Muslims by the West and how the Crusaders have harmed world development with their objective of boosting the West’s global influence that ultimately helped the United States to seize the Muslim world’s oil reserves.” Bin Laden is said to be writing in Arabic with the assistance of a young man who will translate the manuscript into English. So far, however, […]
Sister Sues Sister over Novel
Author of GILDING LILY Tatiana Boncompagni Hoover has sued her sister Natasha, alleging copyright infringement in charging that she secretly copied portions of the forthcoming novel HEDGE FUND WIVES. But the suit is also designed to invalidate claims by Natasha of rights in the work. Reuters says there are two filings for the book with the US Copyright Office–a joint copyright for both sisters submitted by Natasha, and a subsequent one from Hoover. The suit acknowledges that Natasha at the least “occasionally provided ideas relating” to the book. It claims that Natasha “shocked” her sister in asking for co-author credit […]
People and Distribution News
Marie Coolman will join Hyperion as executive director of publicity, taking over the position recently vacated by Beth Gebhard. She has been director of publicity and marketing for Hudson Street Press, and was west coast director of publicity at Random House after eight years with the company before going to the Penguin Group. Coolman says in the announcement: “Publishing needs a new approach, and that’s why I’m so excited to be joining the Hyperion team. As content providers, we need to meet readers where they go for recommendations – whether that is a friend, a media outlet, a bookseller, a […]
Early Reviews, Electronically
LibraryThing is among booklover sites with loyal audiences that has had success in helping publishers channel galleys to interested readers who are likely to post online/review the books. In October, for example, they’ve had available for request 1,670 copies of 55 titles. Now Sourcebooks is experimenting with an electronic offering: they are allowing up to 2,500 downloads of their recently published IN THE LAND OF INVISIBLE WOMEN to Library Thing members through the end of October.